If you have driven the Foley Beach Express recently, you have seen it — dirt turning, pads going in, and for-sale signs disappearing from parcels that sat untouched for years. What was once a lightly traveled toll road connecting Foley to Gulf Shores has become the most dynamic commercial land corridor in Baldwin County, and the opportunity window for buyers is narrowing faster than most people realize.
From Toll Road to Commercial Powerhouse
The Foley Beach Express opened in 2000 as a privately built toll road offering drivers an alternative to the congested Highway 59 corridor between Foley and the beaches. For more than two decades, the five-dollar toll kept traffic volumes modest and commercial development along the route to a minimum. That changed dramatically on May 23, 2024, when the State of Alabama purchased the toll bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway for $57 million and permanently eliminated the toll.
The impact was immediate and measurable. According to the Alabama Department of Transportation, the Beach Express gained 6,000 to 8,000 additional vehicles per day almost overnight. In June 2024, traffic was up 44 percent compared to June 2023. During the Fourth of July week, Highway 59 saw nearly 47,000 fewer vehicles as drivers shifted to the toll-free alternative. By the end of 2025, annual vehicle counts on the Beach Express exceeded 8.4 million — a roughly 50 percent increase over the comparable period in 2024.
That traffic shift is the single most important factor driving commercial land values along this corridor. Retailers, restaurants, and fuel stations follow rooftops and traffic counts, and the Foley Beach Express now delivers both.
What Is Being Built Right Now
The development activity along the corridor tells the story better than any market report.
Publix at The Village at Foley Crossroads. A 48,378-square-foot Publix supermarket anchors a new 10-acre retail center at the intersection of the Foley Beach Express and Miflin Road (County Road 20). The store opened in June 2025 and has already attracted expansion plans, including a proposed 5,200-square-foot Circle K gas station with seven two-sided fuel dispensers. ALDOT has approved a $2 million grant to improve the Miflin Road intersection with better turn lanes, upgraded signals, and improved lighting — the kind of public infrastructure investment that signals long-term confidence in the corridor's growth.
The 121-Acre Industrial Park. In March 2026, the Alabama Department of Commerce announced that the City of Foley had been awarded a $3.33 million SEEDS grant — the top selection among 16 sites statewide — to acquire 121 acres at the southwest corner of the Foley Beach Express and Baldwin Beach Express intersection. This site will become Baldwin County's newest industrial park, addressing limited capacity in Foley's existing industrial areas. As Mayor Ralph Hellmich noted at the announcement, the project represents "a great step forward for Foley," and Baldwin Alliance CEO Lee Lawson emphasized that "having development-ready sites is critical to competing for today's economic development projects."
Mixed-Use Development Near Gulf Shores. At the southern end of the corridor near the Foley-Gulf Shores municipal boundary, a mixed-use development is taking shape that will combine residential units with commercial zones including retail, restaurants, banking, office space, and personal services. A 300-unit apartment complex has been proposed in the same area, adding the residential density that commercial tenants need to justify new locations.
Road Widening and Repaving. The City of Foley has completed resurfacing and widening projects along its portion of the Beach Express, and a new Waterway bridge on State Route 161 is scheduled to open in 2026, further increasing capacity. The road now carries an average of 35,350 vehicles per day through the city — a number that would have seemed improbable just three years ago.
The OWA Effect
No discussion of the Foley Beach Express corridor is complete without acknowledging OWA Parks and Resort, the 520-acre entertainment destination located just off the expressway. Developed by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians with a total investment approaching $414 million, OWA includes a theme park, water park, Marriott TownePlace Suites hotel, and a growing retail and dining district. A new $50 million resort-style hotel opened in 2025, adding another demand driver for the surrounding area.
OWA generates millions of visitor trips annually, and many of those visitors travel the Foley Beach Express. The resort's continued expansion creates a gravitational pull for complementary commercial development — fuel stations, quick-service restaurants, convenience retail, and entertainment-adjacent businesses that serve both tourists and the growing local population.
Land Pricing and the Opportunity Window
Commercial land along the Foley Beach Express remains significantly more affordable than comparable corridor frontage in other Gulf Coast beach markets. Parcels with direct expressway frontage are trading at a wide range depending on location and entitlements, but raw commercial land in the broader Foley area can still be found in the range of $25,000 per acre for larger tracts. Smaller parcels with direct Beach Express visibility and commercial zoning command premiums, particularly near established intersections.
For context, comparable expressway-frontage commercial land in Panama City Beach or Destin, Florida — markets that went through a similar growth cycle a decade ago — now trades at multiples of current Baldwin County pricing. The Foley Beach Express corridor today resembles those markets in their earlier stages: strong traffic growth, anchor tenant commitments, public infrastructure investment, and large undeveloped parcels still available at prices that would be impossible closer to the beach.
The corridor also benefits from a development-friendly regulatory environment. The City of Foley has been proactive about rezoning parcels for commercial use along the Beach Express, including recent consideration of requests to rezone a 190-acre and a 525-acre parcel on the northern end of the corridor. That willingness to accommodate growth, combined with available utility capacity, reduces the timeline and risk for commercial developers.
Who Is Buying
The buyer profile along the Foley Beach Express has diversified rapidly. Early movers were primarily local developers and investors who understood the toll-removal thesis before it played out. Today, the corridor is attracting:
National grocery and retail chains like Publix, which chose the Beach Express intersection for its newest Baldwin County location over other available sites — a strong vote of confidence in the corridor's traffic and demographics.
Fuel and convenience operators including Circle K, which is expanding at the Publix-anchored center. National fuel brands track traffic counts religiously, and their site-selection decisions are among the most data-driven in commercial real estate.
Restaurant groups and quick-service franchises that follow the rooftops-plus-traffic formula. As residential density increases along and near the corridor, expect to see familiar national brands joining local operators.
Land investors and developers who are assembling larger tracts for future subdivision and development. Several multi-hundred-acre parcels along the Baldwin Beach Express have been listed or are under contract, suggesting that sophisticated buyers see a longer development runway ahead.
What to Look for When Buying Commercial Land Here
Not every parcel along the Foley Beach Express is created equal. If you are evaluating commercial land in this corridor, here are the factors I recommend prioritizing:
Intersection proximity. The highest-value commercial sites are at or near signalized intersections, particularly at Miflin Road, the Baldwin Beach Express junction, and the southern approach to Gulf Shores. Corner parcels with turn-lane access consistently outperform mid-block frontage.
Zoning and entitlements. Verify current zoning before making assumptions. While Foley has been receptive to commercial rezoning along the corridor, the process still requires time and public hearings. Parcels already zoned commercial or with approved site plans carry a premium for good reason.
Utility access. Water, sewer, and electrical capacity vary along the corridor. Some parcels have full municipal services available at the property line, while others may require extension at the developer's cost. This single factor can swing project economics by hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Access points and ALDOT coordination. Curb cuts and driveway permits on a state highway require ALDOT approval, and the agency has been increasingly deliberate about access management as traffic volumes grow. Understanding what access has been permitted — or what will be required — is essential due diligence.
Flood zone status. Portions of the corridor cross or border flood-prone areas. Always verify FEMA flood zone designations, as they affect insurance costs, building requirements, and overall development feasibility.
Looking Ahead
The Foley Beach Express corridor is still in the early-to-middle innings of its commercial transformation. The Baldwin Beach Express II project — a planned 25-mile, multi-lane divided highway connecting Interstate 10 to Interstate 65 — will further enhance the corridor's regional connectivity when completed. The Baldwin County Commission has already allocated $4 million for right-of-way acquisition on the first segment.
Combined with record tourism spending in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, the new Gulf Shores International Airport bringing fly-in visitors from 13 cities, and Baldwin County's sustained population growth, the fundamentals supporting commercial development along this corridor are as strong as any I have seen in my career on the Alabama coast.
The land that is available today will not be available — or affordable — two years from now. If you are considering commercial land along the Foley Beach Express, whether for development, investment, or a future business location, I would welcome the opportunity to walk the corridor with you and discuss what makes sense for your goals.